Agitating and mixing device



G.'c. COOKE ET AL AGITATING AND MIXING DEVICE March 18; 1924.

Filed Dec. 13.

E l|. Id Q1 w M v aw. M- WW WK WW m ma; a. 18, 1924.

GORDON G. COOKIE, F PATERSON, NEW JERSEY, ABOSLAi' A. NICHAL, OE IBEOOK- LYN, NEW YORK, ASSIGNORS TO THE TUBBINATOB COMPANY, ma, 01! NEW YORK,

N, Y., A conrona'rron or NEW roan AGITA'I'ING AND mine nnvrcn Application filed December 13, 1,922. Serial 1%. 608,585.

the county of Kings and State of New] York, have invented certain new'and use ful Improvements in Agitating and Mixing Devices, of which the following is a specification. 7

This invention relates to apparatus for rapidly and efficiently blending together different liquids, semi-liquids, solids, or liquid} and solid substances, and particularly to apparatus that will function in continuous, as distinguished from batch, operations.

It is well known that many manufacturin processes involve at one or more stages 0 .20 their progress mixing operations in which different substances are mixed or blended together. In many cases the materials to be mixed together are united or blended only with the greatest difiiculty because of lack of natural affinity on the part of the materials for uniting with each other, or for other reasons connected with the character of the materials. The stirring or agitating apparatus heretofore used for this purpose not only was wasteful of time in producing the necessary fineness or thoroughness of mix of refractory materials but the prior apparatus has been almost invariably operated on the batch principle, so that the step of mixing or blending has delayed or impeded subsequent operating steps in the process with the result that the efliciency of the manufacturing or other process, as a whole, has been impaired;

It is a general object of the present invention to provide mixing apparatus which will be free from the objections referred to and which will function rapidly and eficiently and with a continuous delivery of. thoroughly mixed material.

The invention includes a drum having relative rotation inside an enclosin casing, the outer periphery of the drum an the inner surface of the casing being provided with a great number. or stirring blades which pass between each other at high velocity to produce an exceedingly intense and efiective agitation of the material; In addition to thoroughly agitating the material by the extensions 9 journaled in bear' stirring action referred to provision is made for compressing or condensing the material as it undergoes the agitating operation to thereby increase the blending action between the ingredients of the material; The

clandensing action'may be produced in vari fus ways which preferably include a re- 'striction of the size of the discharge opening as compared with the size of the inlet opening, in combination with means for causing the material to pass through the easing at a rate that will cooperate withthe re- ,stricted size of the discharge opening to PATENT marl-:11

produce the desired pressure effect in the' casing.

The pressure producing means mayoperate inside'the casing and take the form of .a screw feed operating near the inlet end of the casing. Alike result ma be secured by so mountin the stirring bliides that they willhave re ative inclinations that will cause the material to be fed'towardflthedischarge end of the casing at the sametime that the agitation is taking place..- A'centrifugal ifn peller may be employed to produce rela-f ti vely high pressure immediately at the dlscharge opening; Means external to they casing such as a pump or overhead tank 7 may be used and any desired combination of the rescue-producing means referred to may utilized for the purpose. The action may be assisted by a converging conforma: tion of the machine casing.

Other features of the invention will be hereinafter referred to.

In the drawings, in which a preferred form of the invention has been selected for illustration, r a

- Figure 1 is a view in-verticallongitudinal section of a mixing machine embodying I the invention.

Figure 2 is a view in transverse'section of the machine shown in Figure I.

Figure 3 is a view in vertical section of a device embodying a modified form of the invention.

Referring to the drawings for a morede; j

tailed description of the invention, in ,Fi 1+ ed to'be rotated at a suitable speed in a cas ing 7. The rotor 5 is provided with shaft 11 formed in theend flame members 13 of t 0 machine,

and interengaging oil flanges may be pro vided on coacting arts of the shaft exten sions 9 and the on wall members 1"; of the casing 7.

The inner wall ofthe casing 7 is provided with a number of annular rows of inwardly projecting blades 19 seated in fixed position and the periphery of the rotor 5 is also provided with rows of material agitating and stirring blades 21 which project outwardly to pass between the inwardly projecting fixed blades 19 on the casing. The stirring blades 19 and 21 may be varied as to the number used to suit the requirements of difierent material. However, a number of blades such as will produce a spacing between the blades substantially equalling the width of the blades themselves will, when operated at a suitably high speed, produce an agitating efllect suficiently intense and thorough to intimately mix and blend mate rials that are relatively dificult to mix by known methods. v

In additionto the agitating and stirring effect-of the material, provision is made for producing a relatively high pressure in the mixed material as it approaches the outlet end. For this'purpose the outlet port 23 of the casing is considerably smaller in crosssection than the cross section of the elliptical inlet port 25, with the result that material entering the comparatively large inlet port the inlet port 25 a screw feed device 33 may is forced to pass through a much smaller delivery port 23 under corresponding pressure.

In the'entrance end of the casing near conveniently form part of the rotor 5 or be carried by the rotor shaft as is most convenient. The action of the feed device, as

-will be clear, forces material entering at the port 25 into the zone of operations in which the blades 19 and 21 function to agitate and stir the liquids or liquid and solid materials.

In Figure 3 of the drawing, a modified form of theinvention is shown in which the rotor operates about a vertical axis instead of a horizontal axis as in Figure 1. To assist in obtaining the pressure efiect adjacent the casing outlet end, the casing has a converging conformation toward the outlet end as indicated.

In addition tothe means already referred to for feeding material through the casing and-"producin the desired pressure conditions therein t e stirring blades themselves may be used to provide a feeding action of thematerial. For this purpose the blades maybe'positioned at any desired angle in their seats to produce a progressive feeding of the material successively from row to I row of the blades from the inlet to the outlet end of the casing. The angle or inclination of theblafdes may be varied at will to fit the requirements of the work. It will be seen that'the construction of the machine is not unlike theconstruction of a steam turbine I in reverse.

any desired combination.

@ther features of this form of the invention include a centrifugal impeller 27 cooperating with the delivery outlet 23 to discharge the mixed material into the delivery conduit 29 which may leadto the apparatus for performing the next succeeding step in a process. A scraper or stirring blade 31 may also be included for agitating material tending to collect in the lower part of the casing.

In operation the rotor of either the horizontal or the vertical type of mixer described may be rotated at adesirable relatively high speed through a driving pulley mounted on the rotor shaft and it will be seen that an extremely high degree of agitation and stirring is efi'ected in a plurality of stages under relatively high pressure. The combined premure and agitation ed'ects produce in a rapid and continuous operation thoroughly blended emulsions, or colloidal or other homogeneous mixtures.

It will be obvious that heating or cooling effects can he applied to the material undergoing the mixing operation through the use of a suitable construction having an enclosing relation tothe casing of the apparatus. rovision may also be made for introducing liquid material into the machine by way of a hollow shaft and permitting the liquid to be discharged radially through the periphery of the drum while solid or semi-solid material is fed into the machine through the inlet opening shown in the drawing. This arrangement would provide fora successive or alternate feed of the respective ingredients where such an operationwould be desirable.

- What is claimed is:-

1. In an a itating and mixing device, a

rotor ada to to be driven at high peripheral spee' and rovided on its periphery with a multiplicity of circumferential rows of radially extending blades, and a casing for the rotor provided on its inner periphcry with circumferential rows of blades alternatin. with the rows of blades on the rotor, said blades on the rotor and on the easing being set at inclinations to deflect ma terial from row to row through the device ed to hedriven at high speed and provi ed rat memos blades being relatively small in comparison with the diameter of the rotor and the space between adjacent blades within the rows not substantially exceeding the width of the blades, and the alternate rows of blades being set at reversed inclinations such that material is projected in a zig zag direction from row to row through the devlce.

3. In an agitating and mixing device of the continuous delivery type, a rotor adapted to be driven at high perlpheral-speed and provided on its periphery with a multiplicity of circumferential rows of radially extending blades, and a casing for the rotor rovided on its inner periphery with circumerential rows of blades alternating with the rows of blades on the rotor, said blades on the rotor and the casing being spaced'from each other in the rows by distances substantially equal to the width of the individual blades, and vsaid rows of blades being inclined in opposite directions in alternation whereby particles of material deflected from the inclined faces of one row of blades are projected against the edges of the blades of the next adjacent row and whereby the material is fed from row to row through the device.

4. In a mixer adapted to produce colloidal dispersions, a high speed rotor provided with a multiplicity of annular rows of cutting blades on its periphery and a casing for the rotor provided with annular rows of inwardly-projecting cutting blades in alternation with and in close proximity throughout their length to the rows of blades on the rotor, blades on both'rotor and casing being set to propel material in an angular direction with relation to the axis of the rotor, but being in reverse an ular setting to cause inaterial ;particles to e disintegrated by high speed impact against the edges of the blades and to constantly change their direction of travel in their progress through the machine.

5. In an agitating and mixing device, a rotor of substantial'diameter adapted to be driven at high speed and provided on its periphery with a multiplicity of circumferential rows of relatively flat blades whose dimensions are relatively small in comparison with the diameter of the rotor, a caslng for the rotor provided on its inner periphery with circumferential rows of relatively flat blades alternating with the rows of blades on the rotor, said blades being set to deflect material from row to row progressively through the device, and the number of blades and the clearances between adjacent moving andstationary parts being such that every portion of the material passing through the,

device is subjected to intense disintegrating action by impact against the flat surfaces of the blades.

6. In a grinding device of the continuous delivery type, a rotor adapted to be driven at high peripheral speed and provided on its periphery with a multiplicity of circumferential rows of blades having relatively flat material engaging surfaces, and a casing for the rotor provided on its inner periphery with circumferential rows of blades having relatively flat material engaging surfaces alternating with the rows of blades on the rotor, the blades in the row and the rows of blades being separated by clearances sufficiently small to prevent substantial slip of the material under high speed of operation and to thereby provide an efficient grinding action thereon.

7. In a grinding device ofthe continuous delivery type, a rotor adapted to be driven at high speed and provided on its periphery with a multiplicity of circumferential rows of radially extending relatively flat blades set to provide a cutting action, and a casing for the rotor provided on its inner periphery with circumferential rows of relatively flat blades alternating with the rows of blades in the rotor, the revolutions of the rotor per unit of time being sufficient in number to produce high peripheral blade speed and thereby, in conjunction with cutting action of blades, causing grinding action and increasing diminution of particles as material passe-s successive rows in its progress through machine.

GORDON C. COOKE. JAROSLAV A. MIOHAL. 

